


What keeps you fighting?

by JuliaLestrange



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Time Travel, Anal Sex, BAMF Hermione Granger, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE, Harry Potter is Not a Horcrux, Hermione is pregnant, Horcrux Hunting, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Slow Burn, Time Travel, Time Travel Fix-It, Torture, Vaginal Fingering, Voldemort didn't died in 1981, War, really slow burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-25
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:32:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 17,938
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26096404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JuliaLestrange/pseuds/JuliaLestrange
Summary: The one in which a pregnant Hermione lands on 1981's Halloween, prevents the Potter's murder, is the object of a new prophecy and constantly frustrates the Dark Lord's plans.
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley, James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, Remus Lupin/Dorcas Meadowes, Sirius Black/Hermione Granger
Comments: 84
Kudos: 257
Collections: Harry Potter Time Travel





	1. Chapter 1 - The one where Hermione is  on 1981

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! This is not my first fanfic, but it is the first on this site. I am an avid reader of time travel fanfics and decided to create my own.
> 
> This is a test, if it makes sense to you, I plan to continue it. Please pay attention to the tags. As the story progresses, I will add others.
> 
> Oh, and since english is not my first language (I'm brazilian), i hope you understand any errors.

When someone decides to fight?

Is it when you realize, at an early age, that people treat you differently because you are a woman? Is it, however, because you are constantly ridiculed for being smart? Or because when unexplainable things happen - magic - people treat you badly and fighting becomes a defense mechanism?

_ Run. breathe, jump and run again. _

_ Ache. Screams. Sweat. Breathe. _

She was almost sure that although all the alternatives were completely doable, she knew that the fight was the result of a tangle of situations, and mainly, the main question to ask was: What keeps you fighting?

Was it your will to survive? Or, rather, was it the sovereign will to live a full life that kept her fighting? After all, she had never been content with a "more or less" kind of life. Was it happiness in the eyes of your friends, your parents, in your own eyes that kept you going? Or, was it a force existing in your blood, wanting to reaffirm your existence, to conquer what was right to you, that made it persist? She was important! Lives are important. She should fight. she had to.

_ Run. Breathe, jump and run again. _

_ Ache. Screams. Sweat. Shortness of breathe. _

_ Stumble? _

She knew that regardless of the answer, one thing was certain, she would not give up. Her blood ran through her veins, adrenaline overwhelmed her as she ran. Her body swayed with the wind. If it were a scene from a poorly made movie it would certainly be exciting, maybe sexy?. She could already imagine: "Once upon a time there was a pregnant woman - partially naked - running in the dusk of the cold autumn night waiting for her knight in shining armor ...".

"Grangers don't give up!", Her father once said. He was right, after all. Besides, now, another life depended on her. But where should she go?

_ Blue eyes. _

_ Ron’s eyes. _

She closed her eyes and breathed heavily. Her breath was almost gone and her ribs ached. The weight of her womb carrying her daughter more and more mitigated. Two hearts beating, two lives in danger. Tears streamed down her flushed face. Her dark skin was increasingly red from shortness of breath, her breasts were partially exposed, her skin was scratched and her hair was thick. It would surely be the main scene of a poorly made erotic tale, if it weren't for the horror in her eyes.

_ Blue eyes looking at the lifeless sky. Happy laughter in the background, screams of horror followed by explosions and the indistinct smell of burnt meat. And then, broken glass slicing through her skin as she threw herself from the second floor. _

She cried as she ran. Hiccups ripped through her throat as her eyes blurred. Couldn't she be happy? Was happiness a real thing or just her imagination? 

" _ Hermione _ !" She could hear his breathless voice.

_ Her back was stuck to the wall while her legs wrapped around his waist. In one minute they kissed sweetly and in the next second, his hands were on her breasts, there were kisses on her neck, his cock readily sinking into her wet pussy for him as her body trembled in an agony of excitement and he moaned in absolute pleasure. _

And then, his beautiful blue eyes no longer saw anything.

It took a while to understand what had happened. One minute they were together, loving each other, and the next, the crimson liquid dripped down his chest and his eyes widened in shock.

" _ Hermione _ !" This time, the voice was a choking whisper of pain.

She didn't have time to say goodbye. Explosions sounded to her left, the building caught fire and she threw herself out the nearest window while the big green snake decorated the sky.

" _ Morsmordre _ !"

It was stupid really. They were betrayed, obviously. But by whom? Well, that she would never know.

_ Run. Breathe, jump and run again. _

_ Ache. Screams. Sweat. Shortness of breath. _

_ Stumble and get up. _

She was running aimlessly. Her legs screamed in agony, and she ended up tripping over a large tree trunk. Laughter in the distance filled her ear and she knew that if she stayed on the floor for a few more seconds, it would be too late. Very skillfully, she got up quickly - more than she thought humanly possible - and ran again.

With blind eyes she ran through the darkness. Her limbs hurt and the only thing she could think about was his lifeless blue eyes.

" _ Hermione _ !"

Her footsteps stopped when she found herself swallowed by a large deep hole.

"Aresto momentum!" Her body floated in the air for a few seconds before she hit the floor with a thud. "Ahh!" She cried as she put her hand on her belly.

Standing up, she heard Bellatrix's unmistakable voice over her head as she held her breath in fear.

“Avery, hurry up, you idiot. The mud blood cannot be far! ”.

The voices became more distant as the seconds passed. A cold current reminded her of her nakedness, and with a wave of her wand she straightened her robes.

"You shouldn't be here." With a single movement,her head turned to the right, her wand arm raised menacingly ready to curse whoever spoke to her, but then she saw that she was facing a great centaur looking at her disapprovingly. "Neptune is out of alignment with the other planets, daughter of Hecate".

For the first time in a long time, Hermione found herself speechless. Her heart was beating rapidly and she could feel her magic crackling dangerously. What?

"You should go soon."  _ Where _ ?

"Where? They put an anti-Apparition wing on the perimeter. ” She replied, her voice hoarse.

"Forward". The centaur answered it as if it were obvious. “The stars are positioning themselves. You must go, otherwise you will  _ not  _ arrive in time ”.

In time for what? She felt her body move by itself. The great centaur watched her closely as she walked into what looked like a cave.

_ Lifeless blue eyes. _

" _ Hermione _ !"

Her legs support her as she walked again aimlessly. Her hand tightened on the small beaded bag she always carried with her. Again, tears reached his eyes.

_ Not now, Hermione _ ! She told herself. She needed to be practical, she needed to save them first.

It was cold, she could tell, but she couldn't care. The shock, the feeling of incompetence, and especially, the lack of belief in what had happened to her a few minutes ago - hours? days? - was anesthetizing.

When she was six, she was in a car crash with her parents. At the time, her maternal grandparents died in the wreckage. She remembered the feeling very well: One moment she was fine, and the next everything was spinning and the shock consumed her. She could still feel the sensation of broken glass spreading across her face and her parents' screams in the background. And yet, even with everything going on at the time, she was in a daze, as if someone else - a stranger - was watching the scene. "It's not me". She had thought while looking into her grandmother's lifeless black eyes.

She was wrong, of course. That little girl was her, and in that moment, she had also seen Ron die.

_ Not now! _ She repeated the mantra in her head.

_ Not now. _

_ Not now. _

_ Not now. _

_ Not now! _

There was a door at the end of the cave. A big black door - dew? - with a simple goal knob. Was it heaven's door? A hell’s door? This was, in fact, a poetic moment, and if the situation were not so tragic, she would probably laugh.

Ron would laugh, she was sure.

_ Not now. _

Her belly trembled and she hugged her belly.

“Mom loves you, Rose. I'm sorry my love, I'm sorry ”. She said as tears streamed down her face. Her knees gave out to the weight and she fell to the floor while crying. Her hands gripped the soil tightly, causing her nails to bleed with friction.

_ Not now. _

Her low screams echoed through the cave and she covered her mouth for fear that someone would hear her.

_ Not now. _

Her body shook as she thought of everyone who died. Cold sweat covered her skin and she felt sick.

Her parents, Harry, Ginny, Molly, Arthur, Fred, George, Neville, Luna, Remus, Tonk, Teddy ..

_ Ron. _

_ Not now. _

Happy blue eyes. Freckled white hands holding black hands. Teeth aligned. A perfect smile. He was everything, but now, he was dead. 

_ Not now. _

_ What was she going to do now? _

"You will not arrive in time, daughter of Hécate". The centaur resurfaced at her side, startling her. He looked at the door. "You must go  _ now _ ".

She looked at the door with suspicion. She was practical, logical. It made no sense to open a door that she didn't know where it led. However, her body rose on her own and she found herself walking quickly to wherever the door led.

Without thinking twice, Hermione’s hands connected to the simple metal knob, and a stream of magic flowed through her veins. Hermione’s golden brown eyes widened in surprise as vivid images flashed through her head.

_ “Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow ,. Turn this stupid, fat rat yellow ” _

_ “Are you sure that’s a real spell? Well, it's not very good, is it? I’ve tried a few simple spells just for practice and its all worked for me. - I'm Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you? ’ _

_ ‘I’m Ron Weasley,’ _

_ 'Harry Potter,' _

_ ‘Are you really? I know all about you,… I’d have found out everything I could if it was me ”. _

_ His hand gripped the doorknob like a magnet. Her head turned back in search of the centaur, but she no longer saw him. _

Her arm acted on its own, and when she realized it, the door opened and she fell into a new hole.

_ A white flash. Screams. Magic. Ache. _

She stood up and her face twisted in agony. A silver flash and she instinctively threw herself to the side.

Blood dripped from her body.  _ Ron _ ?

_ Not now! _

Her hand caught her wand casting a powerful shield at the moment a new spell tried to hit on her..

"Who are you?" A voice shouted in the background.

_ Harry? _

Hermione’s big brown eyes widened at the look for the carbon copy of his long dead best friend. Well, except for the eyes.

A purple flash. A curse that she knew well. She threw herself aside and looked at her attacker.

Objectively, he was the most beautiful man she had ever seen. The kind that would ruin your life in the blink of an eye. Firm jaw, lush black hair and well-built body. Two dimples on both cheeks and tall. He was absolutely perfect. And yet, his blood-red eyes, devoid of any other emotion, but anger, made her eyes widen in recognition.

" _ Avada Kedavra!" _ . She screamed immediately. Baby cries could be heard over her head, on the second floor of the house, but she would not be distracted by this. She knew well who was in front of her.

Saying those words demanded will. Bellatrix had said that to Harry once. It was not enough to just say, you really had to want to kill the person. You had to accept the fact that committing murder would be not only acceptable, but also desired.

And, Merlin, she really  _ wanted  _ to kill him, to hut him.

Red eyes widened momentarily in surprise the second the green rays left her wand. The wand she had won from Bellatrix.

Wasn't it ironic? That that wand, whose original master was so devoted to the Dark Lord, could almost kill him?

She looked at her friend's father, without a wand in her hand, her face wrapped in surprise and without thinking again, she sent a “stupefying” curse on his way. How could he not have a wand in his hand at times like this?

Voldemort moved forward after the surprise, and with superhuman quickness, he cast a series of spells, many of which she did not know. Throwing herself to the side, thus avoiding ending up dead, she fell on top of her best friend's father. Without thinking, and with a quick flick of her wand, she cut the beam that held the ceiling.

She saw it all happen in slow motion: Part of the upstairs collapsed in the monster called Tom Riddle obscuring her view across the room, however, she knew she hadn't killed him, since his hand acted instinctively, obviously, preventing the wreckage fell on his head. However, she had a few seconds in her favor.

" _ Enervate _ " She said pointing quickly to the man below her. Hazel eyes looked at her in shock. "Let’s gol! We don't have much time. ”She cried and got up and ran upstairs. James, clearly, did not think twice, probably preferring the company of an unknown witch to the Dark Lord.

A noise was heard from the other side of the room. Voldemort screamed in anger as he cleared the wreckage with a strong explosive spell. The house was shaking above their heads and she had to put a bubble spell around them. Before fully climbing the stairs to the next floor, she looked back and performed spells that have become common in recent years:

“ _ Salvio hexia. Protetum Maxima. Fidelux Minimum _ ”. When finished, red eyes found her with hatred. White hands held the phoenix feather wand and then she felt a strong wave of power trying to break the shield placed by her.

"Come on, we don't have time!" She repeated urgently, screaming. If Voldemort didn't kill them, the ruined house would.

Her protections were weakening as the dark sorcerer put more power into destroying his shield. In addition, fatigue reached her and she could feel dizzy.

They arrived in a blue room, filled with baby toys and a red-haired woman looked at them in surprise as the floor shook under her feet. A little boy with incredible emerald green eyes was crying on her lap.

_ Harry _ .

She picked up a stuffed rabbit lying on the floor, and after complex movements of her wand she said "Portus".

The two adult wizards looked at her in surprise again and at the second she felt the protective shield come undone, she said "Ron" and the stuffed rabbit shone.

When Voldemort entered the room, they were already gone.

  
  
  



	2. The one where everything is confusing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one where Hermione wakes up in 1981 and everything is different

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was really happy for the reviews, really. It really makes me happy! Thanks
> 
> I am truly love fics with Hermione and I find her a completely interesting character. I'm afraid to build an OC Hermione, so I ask you to tell me what you think, okay?
> 
> I will not be the type of author who say things like "In this chapter we will have torture" or "In this chapter there is explicit sex". Read the tags, please.
> 
> I write because it makes me happy, because I'm training my English, and because I think that as much as there are a series of wonderful fanficions here, I always think of something I would like to see in a fanfic. That said, I decided to build one! Hahaha
> 
> I want this fanfic to be a little different from what I'm used to reading. As an internationalist, I will try my best to add political aspects to this fanfic. There is no war without political construction.
> 
> I will never promise a specific update day. I work a lot, I live at an apartment by myself, I have two cats, I am organizing my wedding ... many things happen in my life. But rest assured, I will not abandon this fic. I believe that I am at a point in my life that I am safer with what I write and I can tell you that I know where this fic will go.
> 
> Besides, I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I do! It will be a mix of information ..

"Black!" A shout to his left alerted him, and with a leap he dodged a death curse. With a wave of his wand, a spell came out of its tip, speechless. Sweat ran down his face as he struggled. 

He heard an explosion in the background, and although he was in fact worried about Fabian (or was it Gideon?), He couldn't look. One look would definitely cost his life. 

He felt the magic flowing through his wrists. Each movement became stronger, methodical. The adrenaline was overwhelming, but he knew that at some point of time they would have to stop. The question was: Would stopping mean dying? And if so, who would die?

" _Eviscero!"_ He shouted with conviction. His orange curse hit a Death Eater, and he watched in slow motion as the man screamed as his stomach opened to reveal his gut. He had to stop the vomit and continue. It was to kill or die, _right_?

Something like a knife cut his arm and he cried out in pain. Another death curse came his way and he threw himself down, before getting up and sending a sharp curse to his attacker that deflected it easily. When he got up, he noticed that other group of hooded men had arrived and he knew he was _fucked_. He was not invincible and he knew it. 

From his peripheral vision, he saw two orange-haired figures beside him. _Thanks to Merlin they are alive._

The seconds passed, and he struggled in all directions. 

_Run_

_Jump_

_Attack_

_Defend_

And all over again.

After what seemed like ages, Sirius ran to the right and found himself caught up in a fight with a black-haired witch. 

_Bella._

She was relentless, obviously. Her hair flew with power. Her eyes, slightly hidden by the silver mask, were wide with pleasure at the thought of pruning the Black family tree. With a lazy wand gesture, a large fire dragon flew towards him. Eyes wide, he swung his wand quickly and conjured up the biggest wave of water he could think of. It wouldn't work for long, of course. He didn't know the counter spell for _fiendfyre_... 

The woman laughed at her provocation. 

"Baby Sirius wants to play?" She asked him. 

_Definitely not!_

"Go fuck yourself, Bella" He spat. 

The great dragon was on its way. and he ran away, afraid. For a second, he really thought he was going to die. His eyes widened when he felt the heat of the fire, ready to swallow it ... 

… But the great dragon disappeared when Bellatrix opened her eyes wide and held her left arm in pain. 

_What?_

The fighting stopped and suddenly all the diners apparated. His head turned and he looked into the confused eyes of one of the ginger twins. 

"What?" He verbalized. 

-

_A black shape. Surprised screams. Where she was?_

Her tired body fell to the gray floor, while yellow liquid dripped from her mouth. She was throwing up.

“Mr. Potter ?!! - ”

A baby - _Harry_ \- was crying in the background. Instantly she placed both hands on her belly, protecting her daughter.

"Oh gosh!". Someone shouted.

She was dizzy. White light flooded her vision now, blinding her. She tried to get up, but slipped pathetically in her own vomit.

"Who is it-"

"Call Madam Pom-"

Her head hurt and she saw blood on her own forehead. She felt two hands wrap around her, trying to reassure her, but she was startled. Where she was? Where Ron was .. 

_Ron._

She felt her energies drain again when she remembered. It had been a long journey, after all. Her knees buckled and she broke free from the strange arms as darkness finally enveloped her.

-

_"Come on, 'Mione, you only live once!"_

_"Of course, Ronald, but we are at a war." She replied laughing as he pulled her towards the forest. The light breeze touched her face as she rolled her eyes at his antics. _

_Ron turned to her, with his big blue eyes and a smile on his face, and knelt in front of her, placing his freckled ear on her stomach. "Daddy is going to teach you to have fun, Rosie." Hermione's eyes widened in false discontent as he stood up._

_" I'm fun!" She laughed. "I just think that surviving is more important than having a quick fuck." She said the last part in a whisper._

_“Hermione, we are under Fidelius. It's bloody 3 in the morning. No one will see us! ” Ron exclaimed, and then smirked. "Besides, I want to try something." She raised her eyebrows questioningly at him. "You will only know if you come." He replied, and with a tug that caught her by surprise, he cornered her in a tree next to them._

_"Ron!" She laughed as his warm lips touched hers._

_Hermione sighed happily. Ron's lips reminded her of simpler times. She could close her eyes and imagine that they were somewhere heavenly with an ocean behind her. His big hands cradled her waist while his mouth traced tender kisses on her neck. Merlin, she loved him so much!_

_"I love you very much, Mione." He whispered through the caresses. "Really, really" He groaned as he felt her pussy soaked. "Merlin, you are so wet"_

_"Now you're just saying the obvious." She laughed happily and then gave a happy moan when she felt 3 fingers inside her. “I love you, too, Ron. So much". She took a deep breath as he quickly pushed his fingers inside her._

_"Oh, Ron" Hermione said. In the background, she could hear the sound of cicadas, the sound of the wind and even feel the breeze on her dark skin. When, in a light movement, he opened his pants and quickly entered inside her, she knew there was no way she could deny it._

_ That  _ _was happiness. Looking at his intent face, she sighed contentedly, happily._

_"Shit". The two said at the same time with a smile._

_"Marry me". He said. Her eyes widened with pleasure and shock. "I know we're at war, and that you wanted something special, but-" He penetrated her harder. "I love you" She moaned at the speed of his cock inside her._

_Merlin, he was good._

_"- I love you both". He grunted in ecstasy. "I want this - both of us - to be official." She moaned as his hands pinched her left nipple._

_"Yes!" She replied in a restrained shout, and then ordered, "More to the left, Ron. Oh, God, yes! Fuck me”. She stammered._

_"Yes fuck me, or are you will marry me?" He snarled a laugh in her ear as he bit down on her lobe._

_"Yes, I'm going to marry you" She smiled as she looked into his blue eyes. Ron smiled back with blatant happiness. "But I want you to fuck me harder too," she added, groaning at the same time._

_"Well-" He said with malice. "You will have to ask more willingly if you want me to fuck that beautiful little pussy of you, love" He answered quietly in her ear. "Say it again"._

_"Please, Ron, fuck me." She asked pleadingly._

_He laughed. She loved his laugh._

_Quickly, his strokes on her pussy became stronger. Both of their hands were everywhere and with one final movement, she came._

_"Yes!" Hermione screamed as she bit his shoulder. He continued for a few more seconds, his white hands gently squeezing his neck, slightly preventing the passage of air to his lungs._

_“I'm going to come now, Hermione. Oh my God, I love that pussy of yours, love. I want to see it dripping, okay? ” He growled, and after a few more movements, he filled her with his cum._

_She looked at him with a sweet, tired smile. Her small black hands held her freckled face as she kissed him. "I love you, Ron."_

_He gave her the most beautiful smile when he hugged her tenderly. "I love you, Hermione. Forever"._

_"Forever". She answered._

_-_

The small gray room was full of people. It has been a few hours since they left the ruined house. Harry slept soundly on Lily's lap, who looked at him with concern as he answered Moody's questions. Her beautiful emerald green eyes were red with crying and tiredness. They _had_ almost died, after all.

He sighed as he tried to change his position to try to relieve the numbness in his left buttock. In a trance, he watched Sirius walk impatiently around the room, murmuring under his breath, and after a final snort, he sat down. 

Deep discussions took him out of the trance, and when everyone looked at him, he felt confused.

"What?".James asked in a clothes voice. 

"How did the girl appear?" Alastor Moody questioned him _again._

“I already told you, Moody. She appeared out of _nowhere._ One second I was looking at Voldemort, and the next, a big white hole appeared in the room. I was - "He sighed tiredly" Blinded by the Light, I thought this was some kind of bad joke, poetic, and that meant I was dead "Lily held her hands tightly under the table at that moment. 

"I heard screams downstairs." Lily said with eyes shining. "And one ..." She sighed "A different magic flooded the air." 

"What do you mean, Evans?" James frowned. It had been over _two years_ since she wasn’t Evans anymore. 

"I dont know!" Lily interrupted James' thoughts by responding to the auror with exasperation. “One minute we were in the room, the next, we felt the protective barriers fall. I ran to the second floor while James— ”Her green eyes filled with tears as she looked at her husband. "And then everything changed ... it was like it was very hot .." 

“- It was as if the sun had entered the fucking room. I felt my whole body shiver. ” James completed. "And then, she appeared." 

"It is? Did she just show up? ” The older auror asked sharply. "This does not make any sense!" He said rubbing his temple. "There is no such form of magical transport". 

"And do you think I don't know?" He shouted, making a sleepy Harry look at him in fear. He sighed and kissed his son's head. "Daddy didn't want to scare you, my son-."

"Potter -" Moody started again.

"Alastor, if I may." Dumbledore interrupted. His once bright eyes were tired. “I think we'll have to wait until the girl wakes up. You already questioned mr. and mrs. _Potter_ for a long time by now ”. 

"Well, what about the unauthorized portkey?" A blonde witch on the left asked as she looked at her former teacher. “How was she able to do it so quickly? That's not possible! I mean - ". 

"Nothing that happened is possible!" Sirius Black interrupted the witch, rising from his chair angrily. "Peter -". 

“We are going to talk about mr. Pettigrew later, Mr. Black ”. Dumbledore interrupted him seriously. "Until she wakes up, we will have no answers to our questions." That said, the old professor turned to a white-haired man leaning against the wall. "Dedalus, how are the protections?" 

“Stronger than ever, Albus. We were postponing this, but now we have introduced blood wards, since ... ”The man did not want to finish the sentence. 

"Since Wormtail betrayed us". James said sadly. _How could this happen?_

"Fabian". Dumbledore said. "Did you say earlier that the fight just ended?"

"Yes, Albus". The red-haired man with a long beard replied. "We were dueling and they just... I don't know what would happen if they didn't-"

"We would have died". Sirius interrupted. "Bella conjured up fiendfyre." A brunette woman beside him opened her eyes in terror. 

"Given what happened, Voldemort must have called his inner cycle." Dumbledore replied. "I will talk to our spy to better understand the situation". Before he could be questioned a snap was heard, and in the next second, Remus Lupine materialized in the middle of the room. 

His clothes were torn and his face tired. His golden eyes roamed the entire group before focusing on his friends. For a minute he watched them and the next he ran into his arms. The three adults, Remus, James and Sirius, hugged each other in the middle of the room. The werewolf cried freely, hardly believing that his friends were alive. Still in James and Sirius' arms, Remus turned to Lily, the question already formed on his young face. 

"Peter?" He questioned looking around the room for his friend.

"Later" She replied with a whisper. He didn't need a response from the woman after feeling the way Sirius stiffened in his embrace. Remus took Lily's hands and bent down to kiss Harry's scented head. 

“Thanks to Merlin that you are fine, Lily. I don't know what - ”He was interrupted. 

"What are we going to do?" A sweet voice asked at the side. A simple but beautiful woman with short hair and a strong expression has spoken. Like Lily, she held a baby. "What happens now?" 

A tall man behind her squeezed her shoulder fondly. “Where are we going, professor? Our home may also be compromised”.

The elderly man sighed as he stroked his long white beard. “We have enough rooms to accommodate everyone tonight. I believe that for now, the best action is to stay together”. 

-

Sunlight illuminated the small white room. The tension was palpable in the small group while the silence remained in the room. A dark-skinned woman slept soundly as the world collapsed around her. 

Beside her, sitting uncomfortably in a small chair, James was watching her curiously. A small freckled nose and large pink lips made up his angelic face. Her skin, though pale, had a deep caramel hue. It suited her.

He sighed heavily as he looked at the newspaper headline in Lily's hands. 

**YOU-KNOW-WHO TRIES TO MURDER POTTER’S HEIR IN GODRIC HALLOWS, HOWEVER IT MIRACULARLY FAILED.**

_On the last night of Saturday (31) the history of the Potter family almost came to an end when You-Know-Who invaded the picturesque house in Godric Hallows in order to murder Harry Potter, son of Auror mr. James Potter and Muggle-born Lily Potter. What happened, however, took a turn when an unknown woman prevented…_

“Am I only a Muggle-Born? Don’t I have a job?. “Lily asked. “How do they know that?" Lily asked angrily. "How do they know that Voldemort was after Harry and that she-" She said looking at the sleeping woman. "- prevented him from killing us?" 

"I heard from Dedalus that maybe Hagrid said something to someone." Remus replied. "It looks like something Hagrid would do ..." 

"Well, Hagrid is an idiot." Lily said sharply. The three men looked at her in surprise. ” Don't get me wrong, I love Hagrid, but well, he was an idiot! How could he tell anyone this?”

They couldn't argue with that. 

"Did you read that?" Lily asked. “Listen: _'... Afraid of what may happen to the future of the magical world, and above all, of what can happen to the tradition of our world - given that many families that carry our history have already died due to war - the wizard bench conservative will meet next Wednesday to develop a strategic plan on how to prevent the deaths of these families. According to the project leader, Theodore Nott Sr, 'the purpose of the project is to understand what has happened to the magical world so that the extermination of pure blood can happen with such fervor. We want our traditions to continue, that the world we love does not change, and for that we need to come together to nip the evil in the bud at once ”._ Lily read the entire passage in just one breath. "Theodore Nott? They can't do that! It is clear what that means - ”. 

"-They are going to sign some anti-Muggle law." Sirius completed in horror as he looked at Lily. “They can't do that , can they ? ”. 

“Of course, they can. And they will”. James said harshly. "If they are already publishing this in the Prophet, it is because they are going to do it." He took a deep, tired breath. "Now we will have other battles ahead." 

The four looked at each other in silence, absorbing the news. _What would they do now?_

"What happened to her?" He heard Sirius ask after a few minutes of silence. "I mean, look at her arm." 

He had seen it, of course. The horrendous word – mud _blood_ \- rested on her left arm, and he watched with disgust. Was it a new scar? _It seemed, at least._

His brown eyes met Lily's. His wife looked at the scar with fear, and mainly, with anger. Anger at the people who did this to the young woman sleeping in front of her. Anger for the prejudice that is intricate in the society that despises the one with “inferior blood”. 

He saw Remus opening a small pink bag from the peripheral vision and frowned. 

"What?". The werewolf asked. “Aren't you curious? There is an undetectable extension spell here. This is powerful and objectively illegal magic”. Sirius snorted. 

"Well, I vote for opening the bag." The pure blood of aristocratic features said as he lit a cigarette. "Only Merlin knows when she'll wake up."

"Sirius!". Lily scolded him as she took the cigarette out of the wizard's mouth and made it disappear with a hand gesture. "She is sick and does not need that filthy habit of yours to hinder her even more." Sirius rolled his eyes, after all this was their usual discussion. "About the bag, I also vote to open it." James raised his eyebrows at this while she blushed beautifully. “I want to know who she is! If it weren't for her we ... Well, I want to know ”. She sighed. 

When the three adults looked at him, he sighed and nodded in agreement. 

Remus wasted no time. He quickly pulled out his wand and as he moved it, a series of objects floated out of the bag: Various books, clothes, food, gallons, some Muggle objects that he was not familiar with, and…

_Was that his cloak?_

"What the fuck…". Sirius exclaimed looking at James. The man with the glasses in question stood up and waved his wand, and within seconds his invisibility cloak came floating through the door. 

_Two cloaks?_

Nobody said anything for a long time. Other things continued to come out of the sleeping woman's purse, and when a very _familiar_ parchment joined the duplicated cloak, he felt his throat close. He had a bad feeling about this. 

"Oh!" Lily said as she opened a book that looked like a photo album. The three men immediately ran beside her and came across a shocking photo. 

Next to what was apparently his savior - albeit a little younger - and a boy with red hair and a freckled face, was James. Or actually... 

"Harry!" Lily cried. 

"But Lily -". Remus started.

"No! Look, its him!" Lily grunted. "The eyes, the dimple in the right cheek .."

"How is this possible?". Sirius asked looking at the sleeping woman with wide eyes. 

"When are you from?" James asked the dark-skinned woman, without waiting for an answer. He turned to the other occupants of the room. "What happened to us?" Lily tried to hide a sob with her hands. 

"I'll kill him". Sirus said angrily. You didn't have to be a genius to know who Sirius was talking about.

"Pad-"

"You will be quiet!" Lily said with a fierce whisper looking at Sirius as she looked at Harry Sunday peacefully in a crib in the corner of the room. "What would have happened if we had died, Sirius?" The thoroughbred flinched at the thought. “Would you have run after Peter? And Harry? You're his godfather! You cannot die! ” She cried. “Marlene is already dead, and if you had died too, where would Harry go? The ministry wouldn't let him stay with Remus, and you _know_ it!” 

“I would never leave Harry, Lily! But Peter - ” 

"Enough!" James shouted. The two looked at him in surprise. He wasn’t the kind of person who yells "I don't want to talk about Wormtail right now." 

"And what about her?" Remus asked after a period of silence looking at the lying woman. "What will we do -". 

"I don’t know". James sighed. “She just came out of nowhere, stunned me, stopped Voldemort from killing me, and saved us. All in less than, I don't know, five minutes? ”. 

"It doesn't matter who she is or how she came here." Lily said as she hugged James tightly. "She is apparently friends with our son ... She saved us, and that’s all that matters." 

-

Her eyes flew open. The ceiling was white and the room smelled like medicine.

"Hi". A thick voice said at her side. 

_Harry?_

Hermione’s head turned quickly, and her countenance fell with frustration.

_It wasn't Harry._

_James._

_"_ Hi". She replied in a thin voice. "How long did I sleep?" 

"For almost a week". He replied briefly. 

_A week?!_

"Oh" was all she managed to verbalize to him. Her breath quickened to notice the question forming in his eyes. 

"Who are you?"

_You cannot be seen, Miss. Granger._ It was what she had been told in her third year. Horrible things happened to wizards who meddle with time. But wasn't the world already horrifying enough? 

"I'm not sure I can answer your question." She answered. The non-Harry frowned in apparent frustration. 

Suddenly, her eyes widened and she looked at her belly.

"She is fine". James said it. "Five months, right?"

"Yes. Fifteen weeks ”. She replied as she settled on the bed in a sitting position. "Where am I?"

"I'm not sure I can answer your question." He imitated her, and this time she was frustrated. He smiled. 

"I must call the nurse to look after you, now that you are awake." He smiled and left the room.

_Harry._

Everything happened like a blur. A much younger Madam Pomfrey analyzed her by asking a series of questions that she either did not want to answer or did not know the answer to. Her eyes filled with tears of relief as she listened to her daughter's healthy state.

_Ron_

She didn't know how long she was looking forward in a trance, but suddenly her focus shifted to an old wizard in bright purple robes. 

_Dumbledore_

"Drops of lemon?" He asked and she laughed before politely denying it. Didn't he eat other sweets? "Very well". He smiled. “My name is Albus Dumbledore, I am director of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. And you are?"

She tried not to look at the other people in the room, but she knew it was practically impossible. Expectant eyes from people she knew looked at her. 

_Sirius, Remus, Lily, James, Harry .._

_Ron should be here._

She swallowed. "Hermione". She said in a whisper. "Hermione Granger". 

"Well, Miss Granger, it looks like we have a lot to talk about, don't we?" Dumbledore questioned her.

She looked at the people in the room. Their expectant eyes watched her with such curiosity that it was as much as frightening. If books were thinking creatures, they would probably feel the same way as she did: Exposed.

However, she knew she had no way of fighting the truth. She had prevented the Potters' murder. Voldemort had not died on October 31, 1981, and as much as she wanted to run, hide with her daughter and never look back, she knew it was impossible. There was a beautiful baby, just one year old, looking at her with incredible emerald green eyes that deserved a happy life. A cute little red-haired boy was probably asleep now, safely in his house and he as well deserved a happy life.

Looking at them, she sighed as her decision took over her.

“As I told you, professor, my name is Hermione Granger. I was born on September 19, 1979 and for many years I lived a normal, muggle life ”. She realized, of course, that none of the marauders or Lily sketched surprise. “And when I turned 11, I officially discovered that I was a witch. I started my studies at Hogwarts in 1991 with two wonderful boys- “A tear came out of her big brown eyes. "- And one of them was Harry Potter". She said this looking at James and Lily. "In October 1981 he became the boy-who-survived because he was the only survivor of the attack on the Potter’s home."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember, the comment is the author's salary. Share with friends! The more you comment, the more motivated I am to write! <3
> 
> With love,  
> Julia.


	3. The One In which She Is No Longer a Muggleborn

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! Thank you very much for all the reviews, favorites, kudos and followers! I'm really happy about that.
> 
> The following chapter is a mix of various situations and I hope you like it.
> 
> I would like to announce that I now have two betas! Thank you to Blacksbear (Tear of Phoenix - Jamione ) and NightShade934!!
> 
> edit 09/09/2020 - It seems that I had made a mistake and revived Marlene. I made a change and now the final dialogue is with Mary and not Marlene.

**November 8, 1981**

The early morning silence made him anxious. His footsteps resounded on the damp ground as Severus tried to calm the pounding of his heart. 

_Lub dub Lub dub._

His black robes flew with the wind and his steps became faster and faster as he approached his final destination. Upon arriving at the large silver gate, his face, adorned mainly by a long hooked nose, contorted. 

_He hadn't killed the Potter family._

The news brought a sigh of relief followed by tears, and ever since, he has repeated it as a kind of mantra whenever he thought of _her_ dead body lying on the floor.

_He hadn't killed the Potter family._

_He hadn't killed the Potter family._

_He hadn't killed the Potter family._

Although Severus did not have any positive feelings for James Potter, he did not wish for his death. Furthermore, he _had_ become the spy for the Order of the Phoenix because of _her,_ and _she_ would surely suffer if the man with messy hair and round glasses died. 

On this particular Saturday night, his mark had burned his left arm with surprising strength, alerting him that _something_ had happened. He did not know, of course, that the Dark Lord had chosen that night to murder them. October thirty-first was by all means a magical date, and when he found out what his master had tried to do, he couldn't help but think how _foolish_ the Dark Lord had been. 

_‘The Veil between the worlds is thin_

_Our hearts cross the sea of time_

_To bring our loved ones_

_Samhain, Samhain we honor all of our relatives_

_We honor those who have been_

_As the Big Wheel spins once more’_

The words of the song filled his ears and Severus remembered when he was a child and his mother taught him about wizard traditions. Samhain, which for the Muggle world marked the end of the harvest and the beginning of winter, for wizards, it meant much more. It was the moment when the line between the world of mortals and immortals became thinner, practically nonexistent. Since childhood, Severus had heard from his mother how important the wizarding holiday was, and that the holiday meant a moment of introspection, of strengthening ties with the ancestors. 

Committing murder during Samhain was an affront to those who no longer walked the earth, and because of that, some children's tales warned of the _terrible_ consequences that would happen to those who abused the supernatural properties of the holiday to commit the most terrible of crimes. 

_"What do you want in exchange for your information, Severus?"_

_"Lily Potter"._ He had responded in perfectly audible English. However, as soon as the words left his lips he knew that regardless of what he asked, the Dark Lord would surely kill her if Lily was in his way.

When October 31 came, he felt distressed all day. An inexplicable sense of anxiety had consumed him and it was only after the second bottle of Firewhisky that he was able to sleep. When his arm throbbed with pain that morning, Severus simply _knew_ that something had happened...that possibly something horrible had happened to _her._

His legs acted on autopilot. He got out of his bed, picked up his long black cloak, placed it on his shoulders, and apparated to Nott Manor. His heart was beating in an unprecedented frenzy. What had happened to her? Had the Dark Lord called them to a celebration or to torture them for their failures? 

As soon as his feet touched the golden great hall, he knew it was not a celebration. His big black eyes saw his companions in a silent question; What has happened?” Lucius looked at him with an obvious answer; the boy had _survived._

What followed was a blur. The windowpanes of the Nott family's great hall broke at once as the Dark Lord screamed in anger. Severus’s whole body shook when a cruciatus curse caught him off guard and as he screamed, his confused mind shuddered with fear as he realized that the man was capable of torturing more than one person with a _single_ spell. 

_He hadn't killed the Potter family._

_He hadn't killed the Potter family._

_He hadn't killed Lily._

Now, in October,8, when Severus entered the mansion again, his body shook in reflex. After looking at his counterparts in the immense hall, Severus realized that there was a man on the floor, crying. 

"Ah, Severus, in time, as always.” Voldemort looked at him with a frightening smile before turning to the small crowd around him. "My knights, today is a very important day for all of us because we will take revenge on the one who prevented us from eliminating the threat of the prophecy." Bellatrix laughed in the background with pleasure as a burly man raised his glass of Firewhisky in salute to the Dark Lord.

"You lied to me, _Pettigrew_." Voldemort approached the man at his feet. "Why did you lie to Lord Voldemort?"

“I did not lie, my lord! I swear!” The man's sobs filled the room.

Severus never liked Peter Pettigrew for obvious reasons. Potter and his gang of idiots had always made his life a living hell during his years at Hogwarts, and Peter Pettigrew, in particular, had always been the most horrendous of them all. Of course, his feud with Potter and Black was greater than with the others, but the way the boy always followed anything Potter and Black told him to do without question, and it made Severus see him as what he had always been: a pawn in the form of a rat, dressed as a lion. 

Looking at his curved form on the floor, with snot running from his nostrils and tears streaming from his blue eyes, Severus’s nose wrinkled in disgust. How could Pettigrew betray them? _Betray her?_ What had possibly motivated Peter Pettigrew to betray the only people who considered him _family?_ What would he gain from that? 

Severus could understand what motivated each of his counterparts, but he did not understand Pettigrew's motivation. Growing up in a troubled home left deep marks in Severus’s mind that he believed would never be healed. His father, an alcoholic, had abused his mother in every way possible, and she, cowardly, refused to use magic to defend herself. Snape had grown up understanding that hatred was common, that violence was normal, and that true love was a fairy tale. 

Until he met _her_.

He learned what love was from her. Lily was the sun in his life and although he still believed Muggles were hateful beings—his own father was an example—Lily had always been the exception. 

But then he had betrayed her.

Although the situations were merely similar, blood flowed through his veins, because even though he had made _bad_ decisions in his life, he would never consciously endanger Lily the way Pettigrew had. _She_ had been his lifeline for a long time and even though he had betrayed his childhood friend when he called her a _mudblood_ , he had done everything to keep her safe ever since. 

By the time his friendship with had Lily ended, he found himself alone and with a manipulative mind (in his defence, he _was_ only sixteen _)._ It was at this stage of his life that _he_ had noticed him,and when that had happened, Severus was promised what he had always wanted: glory, power, and acceptance. 

But if she died, none of that mattered.

“...but you did, Peter. You had told me that they would be alone.” The Dark Lord's voice was calm, but Severus knew that his act would soon end, and the rat would be killed. 

"No, my lord, I swear I didn’t—"

"You swear?" Voldemort scoffed. “So tell me, Peter Pettigrew, who are you? A _brave_ man who tried to trick Lord Voldemort—like a _Gryffindor_ —by lying that the Potters were alone, or are you the fool who really _didn't know_ that they weren’t alone? Who are you then? A fool or a brave man?” 

Peter turned to look at his master and Severus stepped back slightly in shock. The man's face was _horrible._ His jaw was clearly dislocated and one of his blue eyes, detached from his skull, swayed with the movement of his trembling body. 

"I’m-" 

" _Crucio!"_ The Dark Lord’s voice was a cold whisper. "You are a _fool_." Peter cried out in pain as Voldemort spoke. "And there are no fools in my army, Pettigrew." 

Everyone watched in a trance as Nagini crawled on the floor to her master. The man's screams from the floor were briefly drowned out as Severus focused on hearing the thin hisses between the Dark Lord and the snake. 

Nagini's big yellow eyes widened in pleasure as she hissed and approached the tortured man.

"I'm very disappointed," Voldemort said as he turned to the other men in the room. "It's been over a week now and still nobody seems able to explain to me _who that woman was."_ His red eyes shone with barely contained hatred, and then the Dark Lord turned to him. "Severus, what did the old fool say about _her_?" 

His mental shields rose automatically as he answered. "He didn't tell me much about the woman, my lord. Apparently she has been sleeping since…" He swallowed. "She hasn't woken up since the thirty-first."

A vein popped from his master's forehead when the words came out of Severus's mouth. The man's black eyes shone and for a moment Severus thought his eyes went red. A noise caught his ear and before Voldemort's wand rose to curse him, the man smirked. 

Nagini wrapped around Peter, tightening in a deadly grip. Her fangs sank into the man's neck, releasing her poison at the same time as she squeezed harder. The blonde grew paler as the snake's grip grew stronger, and with a crack, the man's bones broke and his remaining blue eyes popped out from his head. 

The snake hissed as it moved away from the man's body and before Severus could understand what had just happened, the snake had launched herself at the man again, swallowing him little by little. Bile rose up Severus’s throat as he looked at the scene in front of him, and with nothing else to do, he waited and watched.

-

Hermione sighed as she looked around her new room. Sitting on a big bed, Hermione thought about the conversation she had with Dumbledore a few days ago.

_"Why should we complete a real ritual for the adoption? Can't we just tell people that I am their daughter?" Hermione questioned Dumbledore as she poured herself a cup of tea._

_"We must pay attention to all details, Miss Granger. A simple lineage spell would be able to discredit your story. Given what happened, we cannot take any risks."_

It had been weeks since she had arrived, and her life had become a frenzy of emotions and interviews with members of the Order of the Phoenix. Her new father apparently owed Dumbledore some favors after some of his _illegal_ potion experiments went awry, and Hector and Shereen Dagworth-Granger had to adopt her in a strange ceremony. 

_My name is Hermione Jean Dagworth-Granger, daughter of Hector Ulysses Dagworth-Granger and Shereen Ellen Dagworth-Granger (nee Villanueva). I was born on September 19, 1958. I was educated at home and now I have come to England to raise my daughter as a single mother since my husband has died._

She repeated her story in her head whenever she found herself alone. Shereen was a black woman with an eccentric personality, while Hector, a white man with brown hair, was a vigorous and talkative man who looked at her as if she were another of his experiments. Even though Dumbledore hadn't told them her real identity, Hermione feared that somehow Hector and Shereen knew. 

When the ritual started, a voice in her head said that it would go wrong, and that after all that she had done to alive, it was in this moment that she would faisuccumb to death. But then, Dumbledore started to make complex movements his wand— _the death wand_ —and she watched with curious eyes as small cuts opened on her wrists and her blood floated out in front of her, intertwining with that of Hector and Shereen. 

If the situation were not so _strange,_ she would allow herself to question the properties of the ritual. How did it work? What was the correct spell for it to work? What if the couple didn't really accept the adoption? Would she die? 

As quickly as it had started, the ceremony was over and she realized the full scale of what had happened. She was a new home, with a new family and Hermione Jean Granger no longer existed. Hermione looked out again at the large room around her, _her room_ , and she sighed in resignation. 

Her real parents, Emma and Richard Granger, were wealthy. She had never lived in a situation similar to Ron's while growing up, but looking at her new rooms, she found it disconcerting how some families could be _so_ rich! Her head, flooded by the injustice of social inequality, at the room with displeasure. With a wave of her wand, the bedroom door opened to an equally stunning bathroom and she walked over to the mirror above the sink. 

Sometimes she was still frightened by the way the magic worked. Lifting one hand, she held her soft curls under her hands. After two years on the run she had abandoned simple habits like taking care of her hair. So, during her years of escape, her hair always reminded her of a mane of a poorly groomed lion than hair. However, even in her golden years, she had never been able to make her hair look like _this._

Magic really was a strange thing, she thought. Instead of untidy bushy curls, her hair fell _beautifully_ in open ringlets that flowed over her shoulder neatly with a volume she was sure would make even Lavender jealous. There were other subtle changes, her caramel skin now had a healthier tone, as if she had been in the sun for many weeks on a beach. Her freckles were less visible and her cheeks were a little fuller. It wasn't a negative change, in general, but when Hermione’s eyes found their reflection in the mirror, her brow furrowed in response. Now, she no longer saw the brown eyes that reminded her of Richard, her father, now they were big, black eyes.

A _pop_ took her out of her trance and her gaze fell in displeasure when she noticed the little house elf with big green eyes and pointed ears that had appeared in her bathroom. 

“Missy 'Mione needs to get ready for dinner and go down to the lounge. The Lord and Lady of Grabby are leaving for the Dagworth-Granger Mansion and Missy must say goodbye to her parents! Grabby told the Lord and the Lady that Missy will be down in fifteen minutes.” 

"Ok, Grabby, I'm going to get ready, okay?" She sighed and the little elf looked at her disapprovingly.

"Missy must put on the red dress and not one of her _strange_ clothes that are in her _illegal_ bag." Grabby smirked. “Grabby and Poppy cooked lamb today and you must eat, Missy 'Mione! Baby Dagworth-Granger needs to grow bigger! Grabby and Poppy can cook anything else Missy 'Mione wants! ” The house elf jumped happily and after looking at her for a few more seconds, she bent down until her pointed nose almost touched the floor. "Grabby will be back in fourteen minutes." And with a _pop_ she disappeared. 

_House elves_ , she thought with an eye roll, she now _owned_ not one, but two house elves! Her head ached as she thought about it again. Shaking her head, she put on the red dress that Grabby instructed for her to wear and went down to the drawing room when the little elf came back to escort her. 

Sitting at the table, she looked at her new parents with a slight grimace. 

“We are going back to Holland, Hermione. We believe that you need a home for yourself. No, no." Hector said when she tried to interrupt him. “If you are our daughter, with a grandchild to come, it makes sense that you have your own home. Grabby will help you with whatever you need. Now, we have other things to discuss with you—” He said in a strong voice and then pointed to a book on his right that Hermione surprising hadn't noticed. "I know that everything is very new for you, but this from my family's _library._ " He said proudly. "Ancient families often keep this type of heritage to strengthen ancestral magic, and you now _belong_ to one of the , dear, and you must, of course, understand their history." 

"I know it is difficult for you, Hermione, but you are _no longer_ a Muggleborn." Shereen completed. "And while we understand and accept your past, you now belong to our family, and there are certainexpectations for being a Dagworth-Granger." She smiled. "Don't worry, we won't force you to get married or follow those stupid purebred traditions." The woman said mockingly. "But if you want others to _believe_ that you are who you say you are, you must become that person." 

"We will have weekly meetings from now on." Hector said. “We will get to know you and you will get to know us. Shereen and I will teach you the correct etiquette and you will be —to society—a beautiful pureblood girl. We have a theater to present, Hermione, and if we want this war to end, we have roles to play.” He finished by pushing a newspaper in front of him. 

"Heiress Dagworth-Granger arrives in England." Hermione read in a small section on the right corner of the paper. Shereen waved what she read and smiled at Hermione.Hermione didn’t feel ready for this yet.

“I know, it's too early, but you saw what they've been publishing in the paper since the thirty-first. We do not know what exactly your role is in all _this_ that happened that day, but one thing is certain: difficult times are coming and if we do it right, we will win. We have an important political position in the ministry and we must use it to our advantage.” The woman finished.

-

The beat of the music and the voices in the background filled the room with an endless, happy harmony. With all the recent events, they didn't often have much to celebrate but damn it, _they were happy!_ A witch had appeared out of nowhere and saved his best friends! Even though things were still fucked up, they had to celebrate the small victories. 

As he took a long sip of his drink, Sirius's eyes sparkled as he looked to the side and saw Remus trying to stack a few glasses of beer in his arms, but failing terribly. 

"Are you a wizard or not?" Sirius asked his friend with a laugh. The werewolf laughed back. With a wave of his wand, the glasses floated beside him as the two mischevious men made their way to a large orange sofa. 

James and Lily waited with happy smiles when they saw their friends approaching. 

"Fuck, I missed this!" 

"James!" Lily scolded while covering Harry's ears. 

“Sorry, love, but I haven't had a beer in months! If I see another pot of baby food I think I will be sick.” Harry laughed with a smile, his two front teeth on display as James ruffled his hair.

"Dada!" Harry said happily. 

"Yes, my love, Dada!" Lily said excitedly. “Well, I understand you, James. I really needed this too.”

"So let's celebrate!" Sirius said, holding up a glass of beer. "To Hermione!"

The other three adults laughed and raised their glasses simultaneously. "Hermione!" 

"Hermione!" A blonde witch with a heart-shaped face and brown eyes joined the group. "Dude, I haven't had been this drunk since the ." She laughed, blushing as she looked over at Remus. 

"Oh, Dorcas!" Sirius laughed. "That sure was a perfect day, right, Moony?" Remus blushed under Sirius' gaze. 

"What are we laughing at?" A beautiful black-haired witch approached the group. 

"When Remus and Dorcas had sex in the Gryffindor common room during our sixth year." Lily automatically answered Mary.

"Lily!" Dorcas grunted as James and Sirius laughed harder. “It happened a long time ago! Can you forget that?”

"Well, it happened, didn't it?" She responded laughing and then looked at Harry and plugged his ears. "I saw Remus's arse, and let me say it is very difficult to forget about it." 

"James, control your wife!" Remus said in horror as he choked on his beer. James just continued to laugh with Sirius. 

A few minutes passed and the group continued to talk. Sirius allowed himself to relax and watch the rest of the room while taking a few more sips of his beer. Within seconds, his bright gray eyes landed on the reason for the party: Hermione. 

She was definitely a strange witch. He was incredibly grateful for everything she did for his friends, but even so he couldn't help feeling awkward when he was around her. 

It had been a shock when she said that his friends had died in her timeline. He was terrified to discover that Harry had been raised by the Dursleys, and that Moony had spent twelve years of his life alone because Sirius couldn’t control himself and had acted impulsively. It made sense that he had tried to kill Wormtail after finding out that he had betrayed James and Lily, but how did he allow himself to be arrested without a trial? How could he leave Harry and Remus? 

As soon as she had told him his fate had been to rot away in Azkaban, he had felt like crap. He was Harry's godfather and one of his duties was to make him sure he lived happily and safely if Lily and James died. He had apparently failed in that task during her time.

He raised his hand in greeting from across the room. The woman's big black eyes widened momentarily as she returned the greeting with a nervous smile. He knew she hadn't told them everything and it made him a little nervous. 

_"Are you naturally occlusive, Miss Granger?" Dumbledore asked as he arranged his half-moon glasses under his crooked nose._

_"Yes, sir." She replied in a hushed voice. "And I don't like it when people try to get into my mind, Headmaster."_

_“I apologize, Miss Granger. I am afraid that my curiosity has taken over me.” The old man said. "So, Harry went on with his life as the boy-who-lived, and grew up with the Dursley family until he joined Hogwarts?"_

_"Yes."_

_"And in his fourth year, after more than thirteen years, Voldemort returned to power?"_

_"Well, he came back to life in 1994, but his strength increased considerably in 1997." She said nervously as she bit her bottom lip. "His victory was declared in 2001."_

_"And how did he get his power back, Miss Granger?"_

_"Horcruxes, sir." She replied sadly as she hugged her belly protectively. "He made seven horcruxes."_

After hearing her say this, Dumbledore became extremely serious and got up from his chair and left the room, promising to speak to her when she was better. Her friends had watched her for a few moments before she had asked to be left alone. 

He knew that word— _Horcrux_ —from somewhere, but he couldn't remember where. Obviously, after talking to her, he had searched for the term in the Order's library, Since that day, almost two weeks ago, he had not been able to talk to her alone. Sirius knew that just like he and Remus, James and Lily were also eager to talk to their savior, but in the midst of the Order's countless meetings, he hardly ever saw her. The woman was always busy in meetings with Dumbledore and talking to her was practically impossible. 

"... and nobody knows anything new of him?" He heard Mary's question on his left. 

"No." James' voice was angry, and Sirius raised his eyebrows as he directed his gaze to his friends. "Your house has been empty since the thirty-first."

_Oh, Peter._

"I hope he's dead now." Sirius said bitterly as he drained his glass with a single gulp. "I hope he suffered a slow and painful death." 

"Sirius!" Dorcas scolded him lightly. ”I know what happened was…well…I understand! Lily is one of my best friends, but don't you want to understand what happened to him? Why did this happen?"

"Peter betrayed us Dorcas." Remus intervened before Sirius could answer. “He couldn't be tortured to hand over Lily and James. This is not how the spell works. He willingly handed over their location.” 

"I know." The blonde replied insistently. "But don't you want to understand what happened?" 

“Look, I know that you women like to understand the motivations behind the action of everything that happens in the world, but that doesn't change anything! Peter betrayed us and I hope he is dead now.” Sirius replied sharply before leaving the room. 

He knew what he said was stupid and sexist. But the anger consumed him and before he knew it he wanted to make Dorcas _stop talking._

"That was incredibly stupid for you to say." Sirius turned, startled, not recognizing the voice. His eyes relaxed when he saw Hermione standing in front of him in incredibly different clothes—even for a Muggleborn. 

"If you're going to keep using Muggle clothes, you should at least wear ones from our decade." He replied back. She rolled her eyes at him. 

"I would appreciate it if you were more discreet about my time travelling." She responded, lowering her voice as she moved her wand, creating a bubble of sound around them. "Not everyone knows, and I want to keep it quiet."

"If you want this to remain a secret, you need new clothes." He fired back while lighting a cigarette. Hermione immediately raised her hands and took the cigarette out of his mouth. "Oi!"

“It could kill you one day! Besides, I am pregnant, you should have a modicum of respect, Sirius.”

"Well, I didn't call you here, did I?" He replied sharply and immediately regretted saying that when he saw her move away from him and bite her lips. "I’m sorry" He said hastily. "I'm not in the best mood." 

"Well, welcome to the club." She responded with a resigned sigh. "Everyone keeps asking me things, and I understand that what happened to me is unique and that now we have a real chance to change things, but ..." She cried as she looked away from Sirius. 

"But what?" He asked fondly, as he stretched a hand gently on his shoulder. She looked at his hand before focusing her big black eyes on his gray eyes. _Have her eyes always been black?_

"Nobody cares about me." She said quietly, as tears dripped from her eyes freely. "Nobody asked me if _I want to_ be a part of this!" She gestured upwards. "Nobody even asked me how I'm feeling!" 

"And how do you feel, Hermione?" Suddenly, he was no longer drunk. "How are you?" The sob came from her lips and Sirius felt bad. 

“I feel like shit.” He immediately hugged her and she wet his shirt while crying. “I'm scared, I'm sad for everything, I’m sad for _him.”_

"Him?" 

“ _Ron!_ My husband!" She looked up at him. "Minutes, hours, I don't know, before I got here, we were together and suddenly..." She cried. 

"Oh, Hermione." He whispered as he hugged her tightly. "I'm really sorry, I'm really sorry that this happened to you two."

“I don't know what to do, Sirius. I'm alone and—”

"You are not alone!" He interrupted her. 

"Sirius—" 

"No! You're not! Come with me." He said and started to pull her out of the bubble she had created. Immediately he heard the noise of the party again, and moving forwards familiar faces, he found his friends immersed in a heated argument. 

"I'm telling you, Remus, it was Moon Weed, not Cat Weed." Lily said anxiously as she rocked a sleepy Harry. 

"No! I'm sure the Sleeping Potion needs Cat's Weed as an to the Flying Pig's spines!” 

"No, Rem—"

"Guys, hello!" Sirius interrupted. “I want to introduce you to the newest member of our group—”

"Sirius—" Hermione tried to interrupt him while wiping the tears from her face.

"This is Hermione Granger!" James smiled at Sirius and got up from his chair. 

"It's Hermione Dagworth-Granger now, actually." She corrected.

"Nice to meet you, Hermione _Dagworth-Granger!_ " The man said, trying to steady himself on his feet, but wobbling in his drunken state. "I am J'mes Potter." He sobbed with the alcohol as the others introduced themselves amid laughter.

"Lily!" The red-haired woman smiled warmly at her amid the group's banter.

"Hello! My name is Mary and this is Dorcas.” Pointing at the blonde sitting on the floor drinking what looked like a pink drink.

"Remus Lupine!" The werewolf said before burping unintentionally. The witch's eyes widened as she looked at him with shock. The group around him laughed and James hit his friend on the head. 

“Hey, Moony! There is a new person in the group, we must show respect! ” The werewolf laughed awkwardly before blushing deeply, which only added to the laughter around him. 

She smiled gratefully at Sirius before turning to her friends with an embarrassed smile. 

“Oh, Remus? Sorry, but Cat Weed is used only for the excitation potion, and in fact Moon Weed is the _only_ plant capable of nullifying the effects of the Flying Pig's spines—"

“Ah! I said!" Lily crowed triumphantly. 

"—and Lily, I'm sorry, but the sleep potion is made with Loony Weed, not Moon Weed. You can even read a very interesting article about it in the—"

"Oh no! Another know-it-all! ” Mary interrupted and looked at Sirius. "This is your fault, you brought her into our inner circle!" The woman laughed. 

He didn't care, really. Looking at her, with no tears in her eyes and involved in a heated discussion about potions, he knew it was worth it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed. Again, now the story has two betas and this fanfiction is escalating to another level! Haha
> 
> I want to make a brief comment: I know that in the first part of the chapter Severus thought of his mother as a coward woman for not acting in the face of his father's aggressions. I want to make it clear that I write the way I imagine the characters feel and not the way I feel. I have no intention of making anyone feel bad about it.
> 
> Another comment: Remember, thats a slow burn and I mean it.
> 
> One question: From the little you saw, do you think my characters are OCs?
> 
> Oh, and don't forget, comments are the author's payment!! <3


	4. Chapter 4. The one where Petrus has been threatened

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the comments! I am very happy to read it, really. 
> 
> As I am Brazilian, English is not my first language, and although I still have a lot to learn, I think that since the first chapter it is already possible to notice some increases. Anyway, translating everything I write into English is a difficult / time-consuming process given that some things that make sense in Portuguese (like expressions, punctuation and onomatopoeia) do not match / make sense in English. Simple present, present continuous, the order to write the phrases, it doesn't all exist in Portuguese, but I will try my best to learn because I know what reading a poorly written fanfic does.
> 
> I was in doubt if I divided the chapter, but anyway !!! hope you like it.
> 
> Ps: its an unbeta (?) Chapter, so if there are any erros, please let me know! :)

**Chapter 4. The one where Petrus has been threatened**

**_December 2000_ **

_"I'm Pregnant"._

_Silence spread through the room for what felt like hours. Ron and Hermione looked concerned at the positive sign of the magical pregnancy test that floated on their fronts. Seconds later, Hermione's wand arm lowered, canceling the spell.._

_"How were we so stupid, Ron?" Hermione's voice was a whisper as her eyes filled with tears. "We are in the middle of a war and I am-"_

_"Mione," Ron interrupted. "Will be all right". Hermione closed her eyes to prevent further tears from falling into her eyes while grabbing Ron's arm. Disbelief in relation to the redhead's statement took her completely._

_“How can you be so calm about this? You can't say that! You don't know what's going to happen tomorrow, ”she yelled at him, and then took a deep breath as she sat on a wooden chair next to Ron. "You can't say that, Ron. Nothing has worked out lately if you haven't noticed, "Hermione laughed humorlessly,"how can you say that it- ", she pointed to her flat_ _stomach," will work? "_

_“Because I believe in us, Mione. Even with everything that has happened, I believe that we will be able to survive and live our lives together. I promise you that! Besides, this won't be an ordinary baby, ”Ron said with a laugh as he knelt in front of her and took her hands in his. “This is going to be a Granger-Weasley baby. I mean, he's going to be a super baby with a big brain and a great sense of strategy. If you think about it, the statistics are in his favor ”. Hermione laughed as he rambled._

_"His? What makes you think it will be a 'he'? ”._

_“Mione”, Ron laughed “Besides Ginny, my family only generates men. I'm sure it will be a little boy”._

_"Well, and I want you to know that Granger women have been in my famly for generations!" Hermione replied._

_"Well, whatever it is, I'm sure the baby will be a super-baby." Ron joked and Hermione laughed for a moment before getting serious again._

_“Oh my God, you can't make me laugh at such a serious time as this! This is serious, Ron! We’re going to have a baby!". Hermione said in a rebuke as she tapped his arm in exasperation._

_"Damn it, Hermione, I understand that it's a baby" Ron said while stroking his injured arm "Look, I'm scared too. Very scared, but .. ”_

_"But what?"_

_"It gives me hope, you know?" Ron shrugged as his ears went red. Smiling, he removed one of Hermione's curls from her flushed face. “What did Dumbledore say once? That we have to turn on the light in difficult times, or some shit like that ”_

_“ Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times if one only remembers to turn on the light”. Hermione interrupted him mechanically and Ron smiled at her._

_“This baby will be our happiness, Mione. I love you-". Ron was interrupted when several people entered the large room of the Order of the Phoenix headquarters. Hermione wiped away her tears as the redhead sat down next to her with a tired sigh._

_Hermione found herself in a trance while thinking about what had happened. Since she was sixteen years old she had been magically protecting herself so she wouldn't get pregnant. Her mother and Mrs. Weasley had talked - embarrassingly - with her about sex, and at that time Hermione had thought that she, more than anyone else, was smart enough not to find herself in that kind of situation. However, it seemed that it was not related to intelligence but destiny itself._

_She had done everything she could to prevent the pregnancy from happening, but it still didn't work after all. Now, she felt tired, her feet hurt, her body was always worn out, and she wanted to sleep all the time. Her hands went to her flat stomach as she tried to suppress a new tear that was falling from her brown eyes. How would they handle it? They were at war, for Merlin's sake!_

_After a while, her focus changed to the redhead she had learned to love over the years. Harry's death had come as an avalanche in her life, and Ron was there to comfort her. Time passed, and the casual snog became moments of deep love and companionship. Upon meeting Ron’s gaze, Hermione knew that there was no one who would make her as happy as he was. However, she couldt stop think that even if he made her happy, and even if she felt complete and powerful with him, how were they going to guarantee the survival of a baby in the middle of a war?_

_Ron put a cup of hot tea in Hermione’s hand, in an attempt to calm her down when he saw the concerned look on her face. She took a sip of her tea as her eyes stared at a heated argument between Ginny, George and Kingsley. They were yelling to each other and she could feel a headache coming. She tried to calm herself down by breathing slowly and closing her eyes, but she could tell that it wouldn't work because the only thing she could think of was her baby. When she opened her eyes again, she saw when Bill hugged Fleur in the same way Ron was hugging her. Fleur was crying and Bill was calmly talking in her ears. Trying to not get in some private moment, Hermione saw Hagrid and gave him a sad smile when she saw the melancholic expression on his face as he sat on the floor._

_What would Ron and she do?_

_"We have to do something!" Ginny's voice caught Hermione's attention out of her trance. Taking a deep breath again, she focused her brown eyes on the scene in front of her, and watched as Ginny got up from her seat with a snap towards a large television in the right corner of the room._

_"Ginny" George started. "We have already talked about it-"_

_"No! Look at this!" The redhead responded by turning on a television in the lower corner of the room and increasing its volume. As soon as the device was turned on, Hermione saw how masked men - Death Eaters - filled the streets of London with their arms raised, uttering curses as the muggles screamed in utter dread._

_"Waves of unexplained events have been happening all over the world in the last months, resulting in the deaths of more than two million people," said a television reporter. "Men armed with what appear to be magic wands, flying cars and mythological creatures have been the scene of discussion around the world since the Secretary of American National Security, William Cohen, confirmed the existence of wizards in last Wednesday", at this point, a caucasian man with black hair appeared apprehensive in the television giving an interview. “The United States of America has recently become aware of the existence of supernatural beings known as wizards. Such beings are a direct threat to global security and we are already taking all possible measures to neutralize the threat with the other G20 countries ”. Hermione watched as more images of wizards murdering Muggles appeared on television and had to close her eyes right at the moment that Ron shook her hand after a particularly strong image of a dead child. At this point, the reporter appeared again. "Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations, also met with heads of government from the Security Council to devise a global containment strategy." The UN leader then appeared on the screen “What the population has to understand is that the UN was created after World War II in order to perpetuate peace in the world. We live in a moment that asks for global unity to fight an enemy that has never known before. We have a duty to safeguard peace, and in this context, it is understood that it will be up to the States to use all possible means so that we can fully assume the responsibility to protect the population- ”_

_"We have to do something!" Ginny said, drowning out the reporter's voice. "Are we going to go to war with the Muggles now?"_

_"We cannot act hastily, Miss Weasley." Kingsley answered it in a strong voice. "The Order has tried to approach the Secretary-General of the United Nations, but the Muggles have kept their distance from all_ _wizards, and not just from Tom's army."_

_"What did the Muggle Prime Minister say, Kings?" Hermione asked. Ron held her hand under the table. “I mean, the British government already knew about our existence, as did the Crown. What did they say about that? ”._

_“As Pio Thicknesse is the current British Minister of Magic, I imagine that his office has already tried to get closer to the minister, but since Pio is on Tom's side, I imagine that the result has not been positive. In any case, Hermione, I don't know how the Muggle Prime Minister has reacted to the war”._

_"Dung said he overheard a conversation at_ _Knockturn Alley_ _that the Muggle ministry has severed all relations with the wizards since the queen died." George said._

_"You mean since she was murdered." Ron interrupted. "Of course, Vol-"._

_"Ron!" Hermione and Ginny interrupted him at the same time as Kingsley silenced him with a wave of his wand._

_"I’m sorry". Ron replied after the spell was lifted. “It is obvious that Tom would not like to share a British throne with the Queen. She was murdered ”._

_"The point is, we have nothing to do yet, Miss Weasley." Kingsley said._

_"Mafalda told me that MACUSA has been forced to cut off relations with the United States government since the our secret ended up in the newspapers." Percy said. "Hannah hasn't been able to contact Elijah since the New York accident, so I don't know more."_

_"This is ridiculous!" Ginny shouted. “We cannot stand still! We're losing!"_

_"And what do you suggest we do, Gin?" Hermione asked. “We cannot put ourselves in risk! We need to get stronger first, play the game- ”_

_"Play the game?" Ginny asked sarcastically. “Children are dying, Hermione. If we don't act now it will be a real carnage- ”._

_"We need to wait for Ab and Neville." Kingsley interrupted Ginny. "In the meantime, we can't do much."_

_"When is Neville coming back?" Ginny's anger practically evaporated as she anxiously questioned. Hermione looked at Ron with a smile._

_"Probably next Friday, if all goes well." Kingsley replied tiredly._

_"I do not like this". Ginny said with a sigh as she sat again._

_"Nobody likes it, but this is our only chance to know what they're up to, Ginny." Hermione said. "Now we have to wait and pray for the best"_

_\--------_

Petrus O'Farrell Jr. was a happy man. As a child, he dreamed of becoming an astronaut, of learning everything possible about space and of unraveling all the great mysteries of humanity. He was an active, intelligent, sociable and _special_ child that was capable of doing inexplicable things. Did he want a book? The book appeared in front of him. Did he wish that time would pass slowly so that he could continue playing? Somehow the clocks from where he was stopped running. This routine of unexplained things continued for a while, and only when he was eleven years old that it all made sense. When he was eleven he discovered that he was not only an unusual kid, but that he was a wizard. 

To discover that there was a whole world hidden under the eyes of non-magical people - Muggles - was surreal _._ Were the stories about witches in Salem true? Did wizards really fly on broomsticks? Was Bigfoot a magical animal? How could such a big secret never end up in the newspapers? Anyway, none of this really mattered because when he first entered Diagon Alley, Petrus knew that this would be the beginning of a wonderful phase in his life. Holding his cherry wand for the first time was brilliant and he was sure it would be one of the best feelings to feel ever, however when his eyes landed on Hogwarts for the first time, he had to agree that it was a fair draw. 

Everything was new to him in his first year at Hogwarts. Learning about potions, spells, curses and all magical creatures was a challenging feeling that filled him with satisfaction, and even though the years at Hogwarts passed quickly, he accumulated a series of good memories: He made great friends, he had fun, he learned about this new world and met his wife, Virginia, who was a year older than him. 

As a Hufflepuff, people generally expected him to be calm, peaceful and a little silly, but her knew by all means that he was no silly man. He was brave, smart and playful, and it was because of it that he met Virginia; It was a quiet day at Hogwarts when his housemates challenged him to blow up a turd bomb on Filch's bedroom door with the promise of a month of free butterbeer if he managed to get away unscathed from the feat that he had met Virginia. He didn't even arrive at Filch's door when Petrus heard, "Honestly, O'Farrell, don't you know a concealment spell?" Virginia had sounded so condescending after catching him with the bombs in his arms that he almost fell on the ground by surprise. At the time, he had obviously been so embarrassed that he had been caught by the perfect so easily, but later he didn't care about it because he wouldn't have met her if he didn't get caught. Now, fifteen years later, they were still together and with twins about to be born.

Since both of them were Muggle-born in a considerably prejudiced world, it had not been easy to ascend in the wizarding world, but Virginia and Petrus had achieved good magical positions after a lot of hard work. While she was about to finish her second specialization in healing at St.Mungos, Petrus had built a pleasant career at the Ministry of Magic as a senior cabinet assistant in the magical records office. 

If he told the little eight-year-old Petrus that not only he would not be an astronaut and that he would actually grow up to be the person responsible for recording all of Britain's magical births, he was sure that his youngest counterpart would die of boredom. It was, in fact, a very interesting job! While some enjoy the adventure of chasing after dark wizards or unraveling mysteries involving time, prophecies, etc., Petrus was very happy to register magical babies, to draw up arithmetic theories about the wizarding world's birth rates, and of course, follow all the strategies with the minister _himself_ on how to safeguard magical births. 

It was an apparently normal day at Petrus's work that something odd happened. While he was checking out some old reports, he noticed that a name had appeared in his files. Now, was it possible that he was mistaken about it and hadn't actually noticed _that_ birth before? Yes. As much as Petrus was proud to have a photographic memory, some things could go downcast. However, as he was a curious man about magical descent, Petrus had observed that _this_ particular family would soon die as its current members had no children. Or _use_ to not have any children. 

Looking at the large book in his hands, Petrus stood up while waving his wand as he summoned a quill and a sheet of parchment so he could write a letter.

_Dear Mr. Hector Ulisses Dagworth-Granger,_

_We don't know each other yet, but my name is Petrus O'Farrell Jr. I work as a Senior Cabinet Assistant at the Magic Records Office, and one of my many duties is to check the health of the magical population by checking the birth rates of Great Brittany wizar-._

Knock Knock

His pity stopped for a moment when a knock sounded at his door. Although his role was indeed _very_ important for the wizarding world - thank you very much - unfortunately he did not receive many visitors in his office. Of course, he sometimes had meetings with _the_ Minister of Magic himself, but these were usually scheduled and ..

Knock Knock

Sighing, the man got up from his leather chair and with a wave of his hand, his letter disappeared from his table and his records returned to the magic coffers as he approached the Door. When he opened the door, he came across an unexpected visitor. 

"Mr. Malfoy!" 

" O'Farrell," Lucius replied with a mocking look before looking at his office with speculation. 

"Oh, yes, of course, come in," Petrus replied in agitation. As he sat back in his chair, he motioned with his hands for Lucius to sit down. The blond man just looked at the chair with a smirk.

"There is no need to sit down, it will be brief," the aristocrat replied as he closed the office doors with a wave of his wand. Petrus flinched in his seat. "I came here, actually, to ask you a favor, O'Farrell." 

"A favor?", Petrus asked, surprised "From me?" 

"I need some information from you," Lucius replied. 

"Oh, of course, Mr. Malfoy, what would it be?", Petrus replied stammering. 

"I have a friend, a very _important_ friend who would like to hear from the magical records department if anyone, any woman, has recently entered in Britain in the past few months."

"A woman?" Petrus asked doubtfully. “Sorry, Mr. Malfoy, but maybe you could talk to the International Control Department. I only have information about new magical babies, but still ..,” 

"Do you think I don't know how the Ministry works, _O'Farrell?"_ , Lucius scorned Petrus' name and then added, “My ancestors built this institution and today I am one of the greatest benefactors of the Ministry of Magic. Obviously, I already consulted the Department of International Control ”. 

"I understand, Sir-"

"Lord Malfoy, don't forget who you're talking to." Petrus swallowed. 

"- Lord Malfoy, I'm sorry," Petrus took a deep breath. "But I can't tell you who entered Britain as a witch in the past few months. As I told you, I take care of the magical birth records- ”.

"And did you notice anything different in the magical birth records?"

"Not". Petrus replied immediately while Lucius raised a perfect eyebrow in doubt. “I mean, magical birth rates have decreased over the years, as more traditional families continue to marry each other, which in itself increases the number of abortions and stillbirths. I had a discussion about this recently with Bill, also from the birth control office. If we continue at this rate, in less than sixty years, 19.3% of the British witch population will be made up of abortions and- ”

“And what do you suggest, then, O'Farrell? ”Lucius interrupted him dismissively. "That we perhaps should marry _Muggles_?"

“Well, no… not necessarily. But maybe with Muggle-borns ”. 

“Do you then suggest that pureblood families like mine should marry Muggle-borns? Do you expect all of us to become mixed-race then? ”

"Well, objectively speaking, Lord Malfoy, yes." The man responded forcefully as he rose from his chair. "Statistically, if we don't change that, we will have a significant decrease in magical births." 

"We will have a decrease in magic births if we continue to let Muggles steal our magic, O'Farrell," Lucius said looking disgusted. "O'Farrell is not a wizard name, is it?"

"My parents were cardiologists." Petrus replied proudly while Lucius smirked. 

"Were they?"

"They ... died last year, in a car accident." 

"So tragic". Lucius said smiling. “And your wife, Virginia Campus, that name doesn't strike me as a wizarding name. From what I hear, you are expecting twins, right? ” Petrus sat astonished again in his chair. “Children, heirs, are a blessing in families like mine. We need to keep our name alive, our gold in our coffers. We certainly don't want everything that has been conquered for generations to fall into the hands of filthy mestizos like Gringotes’s goblins. However, in a _Muggle-born_ family— _”_ Lucius wrinkled his nose in disgust. “- like yours, I don't see the need for heirs” 

"Mr. Malfoy, are you-" Petrus started in shock as a familiar headache started. 

"Lord Malfoy," Lucius corrected. 

"Are you threatening me?" Petrus questioned as he looked away from the blond man in front of him. The key to Legilimens was eye contact after all. 

“Of course not, I would never do that to someone as honest as you are. The threat is necessary for people who want to harm us, who want the decline of the wizarding world and its traditions, but you, O'Farrell, and your wife do not want the decline of _my_ world, do you? ”

"No, no-"

"So you have nothing to worry about," Lucius said and then looked at his watch. “Now, I have another place to go, but before I leave, I must suggest that you think about my question again. The person we are looking for could be pregnant, we are not sure about that, but if you know about any unusual birth, or if you notice any abnormal population changes recently and tell me, my friend and I will be very happy with you”. 

"Oh yes, Lord Malfoy, I will contact you if I know anything out of the ordinary." Petrus said quickly, getting up from the seat again. Lucius smiled and then apparated out of his office. 

\-----------

**November 1981**

Sitting on a large, comfortable couch, Hermione watched herself in the mirror. Black circles were accumulated under her eyes making she look sick. Her big black eyes - once brown - looked at her without happiness, a shell of what she once was. Being a Dagworth-Granger had made some changes to her physical self, but after all that had happened, it was her head, her mind, that truly concerned her. Could she never be happy again? Was this some kind of terrible nightmare? Could it be that she was actually trapped in her own head, and that her body was laying listless on the floor of the Lestrange mansion?

How could she keep living her live?

A light breeze came in through the large living room window and Hermione smiled slightly, lifting her out of her trance. She always liked autumn. 

As a child, Hermione used to go to a park near her home to play with the leaves and flowers that fell to the ground. Nostalgically, she remembered the feeling of euphoria when little Hermione ran between the leaves, with a happy smile in her eyes. If she allowed herself to relax for a few seconds, she could still hear her parents' laughter in the background...

"And how do you feel about that?"

The question took her out of her second daydream and she sighed as she thought of an answer. In front of her, a middle-aged woman was holding a notebook while watching her in concern. 

After what happened at the Order's party, when she allowed herself to cry with Sirius - a _stranger -_ Dumbledore came to her and suggested that she should meet a Muggle psychologist.

_“I think it will be good for you. We are going through a very difficult time, and you have a very important role in this war, my dear. ”_

_"And why don't I meet with a magical mind healer instead of a Muggle psychologist?"_ Hermione asked. 

" _Right now, we can't risk a corrupted healer suspecting you and telling Voldemort"_ Dumbledore had replied. “ _Every_ _precaution is little, Miss. Dagworth-Granger ”._

Although she understood the meaning of the meet, at that moment the only thing she wanted to do was to get up from the comfortable chair, shout out and apparate far away. However, she couldn't do that because (I) she didn't want to break the Secrecy Statute and (II) also, she had to continue for Rose (and maybe for herself).

How did she feel? She wondered.

This question was a natural catalyst for a range of emotions. Hermione was euphoric because now she had a real chance to help her friends and prevent Harry from growing up to become the-boy-who-survived-and-later-died. She felt anxious because she was afraid that she would do everything wrong and because of that, more people would suffer after her actions. She was terrified of the possibility of making the future worse and putting her daughter in danger. She was angry because she was only twenty-one and would have to fight again in a war all over again. She was angry at having to disengage from her Muggle heritage, having to follow a purebred schedule and really _owning house_ elves! 

And finally, but not least, Hermione felt sad to be alone, because her daughter would not know her father, because _her_ Ron was not alive and because everyone she loved did not _really_ know her at this time. 

In short, she was exhausted.

Now, how would she say all this - without explaining in detail since she didn't want to break the Secrecy Statute? She sure would sound crazy.

"I feel ok". Hermione replied. "I am dealing with the loss little by little." 

"And how long has it been since he died?" The psychologist, Cristina, replied.

"Less than a month," Hermione replied as a lump formed in her throat and her eyes filled with tears. Cristina looked at her with empathy.

"I want to do an exercise with you, Hermione," the woman said with a smile as Hermione looked at her curiously as she wiped away her tears. "I want you to write down all the feelings, all the thoughts, everything that makes you feel _anything_ in this notebook." She stretched out her arms, placing a small leather notebook in Hermione's small hands, 

"Like a diary?", Hermione couldn't hide her disbelief in her voice. 

"Yes," Cristina laughed a bit. “Like a diary. However, I want you to focus on what you are feeling and not just what is happening. Can you do this little exercise for the next week? ”

"OK I will try".

-

Apparating in the great hall of the Dagworth-Granger Mansion, Hermione soon headed for her new room to prepare for an eminent meeting of the Order of the Phoenix. It seemed that since she had arrived in the past, her routine was based on practically waking up, eating, Order meetings and sleeping. 

Trying to comb her curly hair - which hadn't changed _so much_ after the magical adoption process - Hermione sat on her big queen size bed when tiredness reached her. 

**_Pop_ ** _!_

With a snap, Grabby appeared in her room and looked at her condescendingly at her hairbrush weighing in between her strands. "Honestly, Missy Mione, you should have called Grabby to help you with your hair!"

“I can take care of my hair on my own, Grabby! I'm not ten years old! ”, Hermione roared loudly. The little creature's eyes widened. 

“Oh, Grabby feels really bad! Grabby did not want to disturb new Missy Dagworth-Granger! Grabby is a bad elf! ” The little elf's big eyes grew in size as she cried and hit her own head with her tiny hands. 

“Oh, Grabby, I'm sorry! Stop it, please! ", Hermione pleaded" I had a rough day and didn't want to yell at you. " The woman sighed as the elf calmed down. "Here, you can comb my hair". Hermione reached out her right arm and placed the brush into Grabby's. The elf smiled happily and acted as if she hadn't cried in less than fifteen seconds. 

"Oh, Grabby’s mistress is very good for Grabby!" Hermione rolled her eyes as the elf combed her hair gently. 

Within minutes she was ready for the meeting, and with a snap, she apparated outside the safe house of the Order of the Phoenix. Sighing she knocked on the door and waited for a greeting 

"Who dares to disturb the night of sacrifice in the old House of the Bloody Phoenix?!" A hoarse voice questioned her loudly inside the house. Hermione rolled her eyes. Again? 

"This game is already getting really bad, Sirius." She answered the black-haired rascal as the door opened. The first time this had happened, she had believed - for a brief moment - that she had apparated to the wrong house. However, she knew that it was impossible, but before she could realize her mistake, Sirius opened the door and laughed at her for the rest of the night. This time, however, when the Black heir opened the door and smiled brightly at her, Hermione rolled her eyes. “Besides, if I didn't know you better, I could mistake you for an old, grumpy thoroughbred. It looks like the apple doesn't fall that far from the tree, does it? When you least expect it, you'll be wrinkling your nose at the sight of muggle jeans ”. 

"Well, I'm sure _it_ won't happen." The man laughed maliciously as she entered the room. "I love good muggle jeans, if you know what I mean." He laughed again when he saw that she was laughing at him. ”Besides, I grew up with a bunch of grumpy old thoroughbreds, Hermione. I believe that I am immune to this grumpy trend after twenty-one years ”. 

She sat before a large rectangular table when she arrived at the Order's meeting room. Familiar faces greeted her as she made herself comfortable in the chair. Lily was sitting next to Hermione, with James on her other side and Remus in front of him. Dumbledore, Moody, Sirius and a vaguely familiar woman sat on the left side of the table. Who was she?

"Where is everyone?" Looking at her watch, Hermione saw that it was already the right time. 

"We will have a more restrained meeting today, Hermione." Dumbledore answered her question before getting up and addressing the rest of the room's occupants: “As you know, Hermione had to be magically adopted by the Dogworth-Grangers so that her appearance here is not too abrupt and suspicious. We chose Hector and Shereen because they are a respected purebred couple who are reputed to be extremely private about their private lives. They don’t participate in dances, events, nor have attended a magic school like Hogwarts for the past five hundred years.

I believe that although I do not need to reiterate how important it is to keep this secret, I will say for one last time: No one can ever discover that Miss Granger is not the daughter of Hector and Shereen, am I clear? ” Everyone shook their heads positively at the sound of Dumbledore's serious tone. "Great! Now we have to deal with other matters to deal with. ”Turning to Hermione, Dumbledore held up a small plastic bag.“ Although you are, in every way, the daughter of Hector and Sherren, and therefore a lineage spell will not identify you as Muggle-born, we are still at great risk of Voldemort identifying you from that night, my dear. I’m afraid that the adoption spell didn't change you so much, so we think it would be better if you use some things to change your identity even more. ”

Hermione raised her eyebrows as she took the bag from Dumbledore. "Hair dye, contact lenses and glasses?" 

Was she going to become some kind of a Clark Kent-girl? 

"Brilliant, isn't it?" James replied excitedly in place of the old professor. “It was all Lily's idea. If you used a spell or a hidden ring, anyone could find out! ” Hermione blinked as she looked at the contents in her hands. 

"Ok, it makes sense". She said reluctantly. 

"I know it can be very different for you, my dear, but I believe it is the best course of action for us to take for now." the strange older woman on Dumbledore's right said as she looked at the blonde ink.. 

"Yes, yes, as I said, it makes perfect sense." Hermione said looking at the woman. “But it is still strange. I’ve never thought of myself as blonde ”. 

"I'm sure you will look beautiful, Hermione." Lily said as she took Hermione’s hand affectionately. Hermione took a deep breath and looked again at the objects in the bag. She could do that. 

Nodding again in agreement, Hermione took out her small beaded purse and pulled out a pen and small notebook. The other members of the room looked at her curiously as she wrote: _Unrecognizable. Weary. I don't feel like myself anymore ... Sad;_ Looking at Dumbledore, after a minute of silence, she agreed to the changes. 

"Perfect! If that is resolved then, let's move on to the next subject. Batilda ... ”Dumbledore passed the word to the woman next to him and Hermione's eyes widened in recognition.

“I knew that I recognized you from somewhere! Batilda Bagshot? ” Hermione asked before the woman could open her mouth. "The author of History of Magic?"

"Yes, my dead" The woman replied with a knowing smile. 

“Oh! I loved your chapter on the Elf War of 1742! ” Hermione blushed when she saw the disbelief on her best friend's parents’s faces. "I mean-".

“Yes, yes, Batilda Bagshot! You can talk about rebellion of centaurs, goblins and ghosts at any other time! ” Moody interrupted and Hermione looked at the old auror with shame. "Now we have a way more important matter to discuss!"

"Although I disagree with the way Alastor said" Dumbledore looked at the auror disapprovingly, "I agree that we need to focus on more important matters". 

“We can talk later, dear. It is always nice to meet a fan ”. Batilda smiled at Hermione sympathetically. "But as Alastor and Albus said, we have some important issues to deal with." That said, the woman placed a letter in front of Hermione, who looked at her doubtfully. 

_Dear Mr. Hector Ulisses Dagworth-Granger,_

_We haven't met yet, but my name is Petrus O'Farrell Jr., and I work as a Senior Cabinet Assistant at the Magic Records Office. One of my many functions is to check the health of the magical population by checking birth rates in Great Britain. So, although it is not very common, I sometimes revisit some magical lines that are on the verge of extinction to signal the ministry when this actually happens._

_You see, when a magical family dies and leaves no heir, it is my duty to report to the Ministry the fact so in that way, all the gold in the coffers of that family must be shared equally between the Ministry of Magic and the Gringotts. The Dagworth-Granger bloodline, remote for many centuries, as you may know, and because of that, is a really rich family. When I started in the office, I confess that I was a little sad to know that your lineage - that find Merlin's own lineage! - would end in a few years. However, Imagine my surprise today when I realized that not only do you and your wife have an heiress - and I was sure that you had no children - and that she is also twenty-one years old! How could that be possible? At first, I thought it might be a mistake in the magic tracking spell, but then something very unusual happened!_

_I was just starting to write this letter to inform you that we probably had some spell error when Lucius Malfoy, of all people, showed up at my office! He asked me several questions, and I found that the urgent tone of_ _~~the pompous idiot~~_ _Mr. Malfoy spoke to me was a little strange. I put two and two together and called the fact that this heiress_ **_abnormally_ ** _that has appeared in my records this morning. I don't know what that means, but anyway, I wanted to get in touch with you before that information reached the eyes of you-know-who (Mr. Malfoy hinted that the information about his daughter was important to_ **_him_ ** _)._

 _I hope this letter reaches you, otherwise, I am sure that I will be_ ~~_fucked up_~~ _with many problems._

_Best regards,_

_Petrus._

"Oh my god, what are we going to do?" Hermione questioned when she finished reading the letter. "We shouldn't have done the adoption spell on such a famous family!" 

"Don't worry, Miss Granger, we have the situation under control." Dumbledore replied. 

"Albus and I are going to talk to Petrus" Moody snarled, taking the letter from Hermione's hands. “He's a good man, we've met before. A little nervous in person, but a good person ”. 

"If Moody thinks he's good, it's because he must be." James said, trying to comfort her. 

"But if he finds it strange that the Dogworth-Grangers have a daughter, surely the rest of the wizarding society will find the same!" Hermione said getting up from the chair abruptly. “We have to confirm to Petrus that this is really the wrong spell and cancel the magic adoption. I can change countries .. go to Australia! ” 

"And run away?" Sirius questioned her, looking at James, Remus and Lily in astonishment. "Do you want to leave the wat? Stop fighting? Stop making the world a great place to your daughter?"

"He can't find out about me!" Hermione argued as she felt her pressure lift. “He's going to kill us! He's going to kill her and she's my only thing left! If I have to run like a coward, I'll do it!” ”.

“No one is going to die, Miss Granger. The choice for magic adoption has been fully calculated, and you know it ”Dumbledore interrupted carefully. "When you reached the past, you changed the Potters’s fate and by agreeing to join the Order, you knew what you were going into" The professor sighed, removed his half-moon glasses and rubbed his crooked nose. “We need a young person, in an influential family, to try to turn this war on. Tom will not discover your secret. Alastor and I will talk to young Petrus and you should go ahead with what was planned. Your daughter will be safe ”. 

"He will recognize me." Hermione cried silently. "The minute he sees me, he'll know who I am." 

"He will not!" Alastor replied. “Your Muggle disguise will confuse him. Albus and I have everything under control ”. 

"Do you trust me, Miss Granger?" Dumbledore asked smiling. 

She definitely didn't trust him. 

"Sure". Hermione replied. 

"So you should know that we have everything under control." The man smiled at her. "Now that we have the Petrus situation aligned, we have to discuss our last issue of the night and the reason why I asked the four of you to participate," Dumbledore said looking at Lily, James, Remus and Sirius. "We found Mr. Pettigrew at the Weasleys' house, as Hermione correctly predicted and we need to have a talk before doing _anything_ ".   
  
---  
  
**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoyed it! The idea of this chapter was to contextualize you a little bit about what was happening before our heroine went back to the past, as well as about what has happened since her arrival. I confess that I am not entirely sure about the development of this chapter and it would be great to have a vision of you. 
> 
> Note: The term Responsibility to Protect - known as R2P - (in the first section of the chapter) is an international norm that seeks to ensure that the international community never again fails to halt the mass atrocity crimes of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. I used the term in my fanfic to explain a doable Muggle course of action (by the UN) towards war with wizards. For those studying International Relations - like me - I know that R2P was created in 2005, but I decided to ignore this fact and bring it to the early 2000s. I hope that all internationalists who read the fanfic will forgive me! 
> 
> Thanks for the support!!
> 
> Ps: be kind, this chapter has not been edited by my fabulous beta! ❤

**Author's Note:**

> Please, do not forget to tell me what you think about it. Thats how author are paid, you know.


End file.
